I know I am, I'm sure I am, I'm Torquay 'til I die

Am I the only person in the world who owns both a Torquay United shirt and an Eastleigh shirt?  The Gulls versus the Spitfires is not exactly a fixture I ever expected to see, but such is the pyramid of English football, that next year, this match will become a reality.

So, why do I own an Eastleigh shirt?  My dad spent a large part of his teenage life living in the Hampshire town, my grandparents lived there for over forty years, and my Grandad proudly built spitfires there during the Second World War.  In my childhood, Eastleigh was our holiday place, the destination of that annual August pilgrimage to Grandma and Grandad's and, on one such trip, we took in a match at the Silverlake Stadium, watching Eastleigh versus East Thurrock.

Fast forward fifteen-or-so years, and back at the Home of Football on the English Riviera, our beloved club has dropped out of the Football League for the second time in ten years.  Some view it as a crisis, but whilst I'm not ecstatic at the prospect of Conference football, I must admit there's a certain exoticism about Nuneaton, Welling, and Alfreton Town that you certainly won't find in the Football League.  You might be able to detect the slight hint of sarcasm in that last sentence, but the fact is that this is a (non) league populated by familiar foes with proud League histories, and we'll be locking horns with some decent clubs next season - Cambridge United, Grimsby Town, FC Halifax Town (the incarnation of the Shaymen of old), Kidderminster Harriers, Macclesfield Town, Wrexham, Aldershot Town, Hereford United...  My point is that the enjoyment of football needn't end with exit from the Football League; underneath is an interesting, intriguing world in which, for the first (nay, second) time in our history, we will be one of the bigger fish in the pond.  We should embrace this opportunity and re-build, tackle it head-on, hold our heads high, fight to regain our place in the 92, and look for a quick bounce-back.  And why not - we've done it before!

The events of late have led me to delve into my little box of football history for a trip down the memory lane.  Following the Gulls has never been an easy ride, and things seldom happen the straightforward way at Plainmoor, but in amongst the pain and suffering there are gems, up there with the best feelings that any supporter of any club will ever feel.  Through nearly twenty years of old programmes, newspaper articles, old tickets and photos documenting promotions, relegations, cup runs and come-backs, are memories spanning the whole spectrum of what the Beautiful Game is all about - one minute your team are running out at White Hart Lane, the next you're marvelling at just how bad York City's toilet facilities (I mean, a damp old brick wall) really are.  It all adds up the genuine football experience that is totally lost on the corporate, money-centric business that is the Premier League, but I know what I'd rather have - my little club, down by the sea, doing it the hard way, but doing it with plenty of heart.

 They say that it is always darkest before the dawn, so keep the faith, Yellow Army, remember your history and keep on fighting, for the sun will rise over Plainmoor again - We will be back!